There are many good articles out there explaining the Y2K problem. This is not one of them! Consider this more of a personal note from my heart to all our friends who are wondering what this Y2K thing is all about and what to do (or not do) about it – a starting point.

Personally, I went from "Unaware," (as in totally oblivious to what was going on in this realm), progressing on to "Scared" (as in scared stiff), and then on to where I'm currently at: "Getting Prepared." We're not all the way there yet, but we are working on it as we feel the Lord is leading us.

Whether you are still in the "Unaware" stage or the "Scared" stage, or even "Getting Prepared," you will find a few choice resources of tremendous help to you! There are, as you might have guessed, many resources out now on this topic! We have obtained a few and are going through them to glean what we can. Having only so much time to read, and only so much money, we have focused in on the few resources you'll find after this. They may or may not be the best of all Y2K resources out there; I don't have time to read them ALL and give you a comparison! But they're all VERY good!!! And I have been greatly encouraged, edified, challenged and calmed by them!

I always think it's good to read more than one author on any topic, no matter what it is, just because you get a much more fully faceted, in-depth view of it. Each of the books we sell has a different perspective that, jointly, give a well-rounded, bountiful supply of insight, practical tools and check-lists you'll need if you do not want to be caught off-guard. I recommend you read at least 2 or 3 books... And then DO something about it, of course! ;-)

So what if this whole thing is just a "bump in the road," as some (fewer and fewer) predict it will be? And you've gone to all this trouble to read up on the subject and gather food and supplies? OK, so what would be wasted? Natural disasters can and do happen every day (well, at least every week) around the world: floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, fires, droughts, and volcanoes. (We got ¼" of ash when Mt. St. Helens blew back in 1980!) We all probably need to be better prepared for such occurrences than we are. I'm sure that anyone who's been a victim of any of these will tell you "Prepare!"

But we need to be preparing in more than just physical ways, we also need to prepare spiritually. It's vital that we get God's heart on the matter, and prepare our hearts! Anything of a spiritual nature is going to affect not just this one arena, but all arenas of our lives!

Our pastor spoke on "7 things we need to do to be spiritually prepared for difficult times." Guess what: Not one of the things he shared is a "difficult time only" concern! They're all things we ought to be tending to all the time in our lives! But they will just be especially helpful and needful in hard times. And if a few months go by (into the year 2000) and nothing catastrophic happens, then great! Just give away the extra you've stored up to a food bank or homeless shelter!

I personally think that what many families and communities are doing in response to the Y2K issue is a good thing! My own kids are learning some basic skills and knowledge in an area that I really haven't had much reason to teach them in up until now. And "emergency preparedness" is something that any and everyone should have a basic knowledge of, and be reasonably prepared for. The whole point of storing up extra food and supplies isn't just for our own good anyway. It's to be able and ready to help others who are in need. Any time of crisis is a prime time to share the gospel. People who are normally resistant to God start listening when they're scared, hungry, cold, and shaken up. This is just human nature, but God takes us how ever He can get us. He knows how to get our attention!

Two of our three children did not like snuggling as babies, much to my disappointment and dismay.   :-(   (They have since outgrown it!)  I hate to admit to it publicly, but I loved it when they got sick and just wanted to "rock-rock" with Mama! What a treat! I felt bad that they felt bad, but I thoroughly enjoyed the sweet intimacy we usually didn't get to experience because of their independence. Fortunately, they have now grown to realize that independence does not equal separateness.

Unfortunately most people today - even most Christians(!) - do not realize that God wants to be intimate with His children! "I am strong; I am invincible; I am (wo)man" is even more the theme of humankind today than it was when Helen Ready first belted it out two decades ago! (Wo)Man arrogantly thinks (s)he knows it all and doesn't need God, who is seen as a pitiable "crutch" only for the weak. ARRGGHH! ;-) I believe this is the heart of what God is dealing with now with this Y2K crisis! He's using the dilemma and embarrassment of Y2K to put man back in his rightful place – of being fully dependent upon God! And who but Christians will be there as a "net" to catch them as they fall? And we get to do so with grace – not rubbing their noses in their folly with an "I told you so" attitude that will only obscure the merciful heart of God and push them further from Him, but by giving them the same grace that God gives us!

I personally want to be fully ready to be moved into action wherever God might want to use me. I want to be prepared to not only take care of my family, but to take care of whatever needs or whomever He might bring my way. I'm only one little pawn in God's hand on the chessboard of life, but I want to be a prepared pawn - "useful to the Master, ready for any good work!"

(Barb Shelton and her husband, Dave, have homeschooled their 3 children since 1982. She knows next to nothing about Y2K and does not even pretend to be an expert on the subject! But she is learning and highly recommends you do too! Ignorance is not bliss when you could have prepared!)